MS-DOS
(added link to FreeDOS and Windows ME is the last version to have DOS under the hood.) |
(Mention the format of DOS file names; it may be relevant when documenting the file formats) |
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| + | '''MS-DOS''' refers to "Microsoft DOS", the Microsoft-developed variant of DOS. Because of the prominence of Microsoft in computer industry, it is frequently the case that people refer to "DOS" when they mean MS-DOS, although there have in fact been a number of non-Microsoft operating systems also called DOS (such as [[Apple_DOS_file_system|Apple II DOS]]). PC-DOS refers to the specific variety of MS-DOS that was licensed by Microsoft to IBM for use on its personal computers, while MS-DOS is the generic version that ran on a wide variety of "PC clones" or "compatibles". Microsoft originally got MS-DOS from another company called Seattle Computer Products which had created its predecessor as an imitation of CP/M. The first version of MS-DOS didn't even support subdirectories, but this was added in version 2.0. Windows runs on a base of MS-DOS, something that was clearly visible in early versions up to 3.11 (where you had to first boot DOS and then run Windows as a separate program), but obscured in later versions (up to and including Windows ME) which boot directly into Windows, but DOS was still there under the hood; finally with [[Windows NT]] and later systems built on it such as [[Windows XP]] and its successors, the low-level operating system kernel was fully integrated to a system that was "Windows" from top to bottom. | ||
| − | + | Of particular interest to DOS users is [[FreeDOS]], which reimplements and extends MS-DOS and other DOSs. | |
| − | + | DOS file names (including directory names) are case-insensitive and are limited to 8 before the dot and 3 after the dot. A full path of a file in DOS includes the drive letter and colon and backslash, and the directory names are followed by backslahes before the next piece(s) of the path; relative names can be specified by excluding the drive letter and colon and first backslash. | |
| + | See also: | ||
| + | * [[:Category:MS-DOS]], for formats related to MS-DOS | ||
| + | * [[DOSBox]] | ||
| + | |||
| + | == Versions == | ||
| + | * [[MS-DOS 3.30]] | ||
| + | * [[MS-DOS 6.22]] | ||
| + | |||
| + | == Resources == | ||
* [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MS-DOS Wikipedia entry on MS-DOS] | * [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MS-DOS Wikipedia entry on MS-DOS] | ||
* [http://www.computerhope.com/history/dos.htm MS-DOS Release Timeline] from computerhope.com | * [http://www.computerhope.com/history/dos.htm MS-DOS Release Timeline] from computerhope.com | ||
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* [http://www.thezac.com/MicrosoftHistory/03_ms-dos1x-3x.html The History and Future of Microsoft Operating Systems] | * [http://www.thezac.com/MicrosoftHistory/03_ms-dos1x-3x.html The History and Future of Microsoft Operating Systems] | ||
* [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_DOS_operating_systems Timeline of DOS Operating Systems] from Wikipedia | * [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_DOS_operating_systems Timeline of DOS Operating Systems] from Wikipedia | ||
| + | * [http://www.computerhistory.org/atchm/microsoft-ms-dos-early-source-code/ Microsoft MS-DOS early source code] from Computer History Museum | ||
| + | |||
| + | [[Category:MS-DOS| ]] | ||
| + | [[Category:Microsoft]] | ||
| + | [[Category:Operating Systems]] | ||
| + | [[Category:Software]] | ||
Latest revision as of 09:10, 31 July 2021
| Software | > | Operating Systems | > | MS-DOS |
MS-DOS refers to "Microsoft DOS", the Microsoft-developed variant of DOS. Because of the prominence of Microsoft in computer industry, it is frequently the case that people refer to "DOS" when they mean MS-DOS, although there have in fact been a number of non-Microsoft operating systems also called DOS (such as Apple II DOS). PC-DOS refers to the specific variety of MS-DOS that was licensed by Microsoft to IBM for use on its personal computers, while MS-DOS is the generic version that ran on a wide variety of "PC clones" or "compatibles". Microsoft originally got MS-DOS from another company called Seattle Computer Products which had created its predecessor as an imitation of CP/M. The first version of MS-DOS didn't even support subdirectories, but this was added in version 2.0. Windows runs on a base of MS-DOS, something that was clearly visible in early versions up to 3.11 (where you had to first boot DOS and then run Windows as a separate program), but obscured in later versions (up to and including Windows ME) which boot directly into Windows, but DOS was still there under the hood; finally with Windows NT and later systems built on it such as Windows XP and its successors, the low-level operating system kernel was fully integrated to a system that was "Windows" from top to bottom.
Of particular interest to DOS users is FreeDOS, which reimplements and extends MS-DOS and other DOSs.
DOS file names (including directory names) are case-insensitive and are limited to 8 before the dot and 3 after the dot. A full path of a file in DOS includes the drive letter and colon and backslash, and the directory names are followed by backslahes before the next piece(s) of the path; relative names can be specified by excluding the drive letter and colon and first backslash.
See also:
- Category:MS-DOS, for formats related to MS-DOS
- DOSBox
[edit] Versions
[edit] Resources
- Wikipedia entry on MS-DOS
- MS-DOS Release Timeline from computerhope.com
- A short history of MS-DOS
- The History and Future of Microsoft Operating Systems
- Timeline of DOS Operating Systems from Wikipedia
- Microsoft MS-DOS early source code from Computer History Museum
